Splendid Remake!
At the start, Wheatley’s direction sails us around an elegant coastal hotel in this lavish period drama. With enviable period fashion and classic cars, a wicked, obtrusive employer is easily replaced by a quietly confident Maxim, handsomely and splendidly played by Mr. Hammer. How lucky is the beautiful (yet daunted) lady’s companion to have met him. Or is shi?
Mr. Hammer’s Maxim is not cocky or patronizing as Mr. Olivier’s in 1940; Mr. Hammer is quite appealing at the start. Miss James offers as brilliant a performance as Joan Fontaine’s in 1940. I also prefer this pleasant and proper 2020 version (instead of the 1940 version). I expect as much from the British and from the ‘lady and gentleman’ dance of the director (Wheatley) and the screenwriters (Goldman, Shrapnel, Waterhouse).
All the characters have depth; some have brooding; Hammer and James’ characters develop nicely throughout; and the cinematography and music were compelling. While watching this remake, I gladly no longer cared about the book or the original film. I think there should have been award nominations, too. How I envy the love some have to “walk through flames for ..”